Under the bright sun of summer, University of Idaho students and faculty are busy working on the education, research and service that are the hallmarks of our Vandal excellence. I want to interrupt the Friday Letter’s usual summer hiatus to make sure you know what our Vandal family is achieving inside and outside of the classroom. - U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue visited U of I on July 2, joined by Gov. Butch Otter, Lt. Gov. Brad Little and Idaho Secretary of Agriculture Director Celia Gould. President Staben, Vice President for Research Janet Nelson, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Dean Michael Parrella, and College of Natural Resources interim Dean Dennis Becker, among others, showed visiting officials some of the exciting innovation and expertise at Idaho’s land-grant research university. The group toured campus and gathered at the Revely Classroom Building for insight into U of I partnership on projects such as the ICCU Arena and the Idaho Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment.
- U of I researchers are trying to answer questions that could help slow the spread of antibiotic drug resistance, develop techniques to produce vaccines more quickly and help with treatment of malaria thanks to three federal grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The awards to Eva Top, Craig Miller and Holly Wichman in the College of Science and Shirley Luckhart in the colleges of Science and Agricultural and Life Sciences, total nearly $5 million to support multiyear studies aimed at improving disease treatment.
- In June, U of I celebrated the naming of the “Rinker Rock Creek Ranch” in honor of Harry Rinker and the Rinker family, whose support will allow the university to purchase the 10,400-acre property, currently owned in partnership with the Wood River Land Trust and The Nature Conservancy. The University of Idaho Foundation was on hand to help U of I celebrate. The Rinker Rock Creek Ranch is a unique research, education and outreach facility, offering a living laboratory for hands-on understanding of rangeland resource management, conservation and recreation. Research at the ranch has already begun, and a series of public educational and engagement activities are taking place throughout the summer.
- Some members of the Vandal family are taking on new, key leadership roles. Dennis Becker, professor and Policy Analysis Group director, is interim dean of the College of Natural Resources. Ben Hunter, associate dean, took the helm July 1 as interim dean for University Libraries. Sean Quinlan, history department chair, began May 29 as interim dean of the College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences. Each interim dean brings a depth and breadth of experience to the position: Becker earned a doctorate at U of I in 2002 and returned in 2015; Hunter has been with U of I since 2006; and Quinlan has been a Vandal since 2001. The university will soon name an interim dean for the College of Law, as Mark Adams steps away to return to scholarship and teaching.
- University of Idaho faculty continue to produce compelling research that offers new knowledge and points to solutions for critical areas. College of Natural Resources Assistant Professor Tara Hudiburg was awarded $750,000 by the Department of Energy to study biofuel sustainability, part of a $104 million project. A recent paper in the journal “Fire” co-authored by Associate Professor John Abatzoglou examines the role of climate change and human behavior in wildfires. In the journal Geosphere, U of I geology Professor Jerry Fairley and a team of examine the amount of heat escaping from Yellowstone National Park hot springs.
- U of I is one of only 12 institutions nationwide receiving the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation’s Beckman Scholars Program Award to support outstanding undergraduate researchers in biology and biological engineering. Two U of I students, Alexandra Flores and LeeAnn Hold, have earned Beckman awards and begun work on the 15-month program. Alexandra, a biochemistry major mentored by associate professor Peter Fuerst, is studying the brains of mice to look for gene patterns with connections to neurological disorders, particularly autism. LeeAnn, a biological engineering major mentored by Associate Professor Nathan Schiele, is creating tendon from stem cells to help those with tendon injuries and mobility challenges.
- The Chobani Foundation will provide $160,000 for scholarships to the University of Idaho to help educate the next generation of dairy professionals. The Chobani Scholars program will focus on students from Idaho’s Magic Valley surrounding Twin Falls, where the Chobani company operates the world’s largest yogurt plant. The foundation’s goal is to support students, including children of migrant workers, who have family ties to the dairy industry and plan to pursue their own dairy careers. The donation will fund eight $20,000 scholarships split between students who begin college in 2019 and 2020.
We have a lot to be proud of – and we’ll have a lot of forward momentum for August. | | Go Vandals! Chuck Staben President | | | Secretary Sonny Perdue Visits U of I July 2, 2018 | | | | |